I am a MONSTER- some (really specific) bookish confessions

This is one of my favourite times of year. So to celebrate, I’ve dug deep and found some awfully specific, monstrous confessions. Let’s jump right in:

I’ve mentioned before, but I don’t take good care of my books– I write in them, I dogear the pages, I don’t (always) care if the spines are creased- still the vast majority are second hand, so #noguilt

I had a lot of firsts with Harry Potter, some of which may not be sopopular… As some of you may know Harry Potter was the first “big” book I read, introducing me to the wonderful world of books when I was seven… but that’s not where the story ended and that’s not the only impact it had on my reading journey. You see, I’m actually sentimental about Harry Potter for a reason that might be sacrilegious to some: it’s also the first book I critiqued (#sorrynotsorry). Annnd even this little fact is enough to get me in trouble, so I’ll leave that there (can you tell I’m a little afraid? 😉 )

I stopped reading historical fiction for two years at one point. And since this is a confessions piece, I’m gonna be brutally honest: it was cos I was so scarred by Phillipa Gregory (and irritated by the historical inaccuracy in her books). I know that’s harsh, but it was especially harsh on me, cos I love a good piece of historical fiction. Of course, I stupidly picked up another Gregory book not so long ago… I never learn! Gah!

I’ve never read an Agatha Christie book and I don’t plan to– it’s a niggling thing that I probably should, but at the same time I have no desire to pick one up no matter how many times I see it in the library.

I’m to blame for spreading Twilight round my year like a plague. This was unintentional- but I can never avoid the fact it was *my* copies of Twilight that did the rounds in my school. Oops.

I don’t always cry at sad books– I was dried eyed over The Fault in Our Stars and even in the notoriously devastating Me Before You– which I sobbed over- I cried at the *wrong* part. Highlight for spoiler: not the part when he dies, but when she’s raped earlier in the book.

I answered a question on an exam once for a book I hadn’t read… because, you know, I hadn’t revised properly. And do you know what? I actually did just fine in that exam. Maybe the other sections pulled up the grade- but I distinctly remember that exam getting progressively more awful. (Of course I bluffed in class too, but I feel like this is slightly worse)

I have *a lot* of different Fairy Tale anthologies– for instance I have 4 of Grimms alone… Normally I’m pretty good with book doubles- since I got my Shakespeare compendium, I’ve gotten rid of all other copies except a nice one of Richard II. BUT when it comes to Fairy Tales, there’s no limit to the number of copies I have/want. I mean there’s totally reasons for this: some of them are collectibles, others have different essays at the back, and I feel like with translations you need several versions to see which one you like (at least that’s my opinion- when I did Classics at uni, I generally felt it helped to have a minimum of three translations in front of you- especially if you were doing a close reading) So yeah… totally justifiable… (help me out here, I’m floundering a little 😉 )

I cannot always read books that hit too close to home– yeah I know we should read outside our comfort zone, but if a book is actually on a subject I know a lot about, I will (somewhat subconsciously) avoid it.

I deliberately spoiled myself for the Mortal Instruments. I’m not even sorry I did this one, cos to be honest I *cannot* read books about incest. And obviously I did not think Clare was really gonna go in that direction, but I still had to find out for sure so I could be safe. The bad part about this was that once I checked it wasn’t actually the case, I still continued reading spoilers, cos I got a little hooked- so yeahhh, I spoiled a huge amount of that series for myself. Whoopsy daisy.

Okay, so now’s the time you can publically condemn/commend me! Were any of these particularly shocking? (so much so you can no longer look at my monkey face) Do you relate? Or do you have any oddly specific bookish confessions of your own? Let me know in the comments!

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I read spoilers, too! Especially if I don’t intend to finish a series. I do the same for TV shows that I’m on the fence about. Often I save myself the agony by doing so!

And I don’t always cry at the parts that others do as well — in my opinion THE WRONG PERSON died in The Fault in Our Stars, and for me the funeral wasn’t the saddest part — it was when they went to Amsterdam to meet the guy and he turned out to be THE BIGGEST JERK EVER that just upset me so, so much.

Same with Me Before You — I got really choked up *before* he died, when he was explaining to her that he felt it was the right thing, and she was trying to come to grips with accepting his decision. (Because of course Will’s choice WAS an extremely difficult one to make, and for the haters who thought he “took the easy way out” — well, I won’t go on the soapbox, but suffice to say I don’t agree with that view at all.)

And, no offense, but, yeah, NEVER pick up another Gregory “historical” novel again, and you’ll be all set for the true genre! 😉

It makes so much sense to do that- I’ve *definitely* done it with tv shows I’m on the fence about too- then if it doesn’t sound good, I don’t have to watch it.

Oh gosh yes- to be honest, I felt like it relied too much on shock value and I wasn’t shocked, since I guessed that would happen from the first chapter (the second she said he was in remission and she was terminal I knew- it’s like cancer book speak for *he’s so gonna die*) And yeah I was really upset by that too.

Yeah that makes total sense- I agree with you as well- I don’t think he took the easy way out at all. I think it’s a complicated issue and I don’t think either side has the monopoly on caring about what happens to people here, so I do try to be more objective on that. It was just a sad situation.

hahaha yes, I’m so silly for not having more self control to be honest, cos I always end up wound up after her books. But I think Wideacre was the final nail in the coffin for me- that book just makes my brain go “ugh”

hahaha I know right- it is not popular to say you have any criticisms of it- I’ve seen so many people say totally non-controversial things about it and get lambasted. I’m pretty sure some of the things I’ve said would get me in far more trouble 😉

This is very interesting. I used to dog-ear pages without a care in the world, but there’s just a lot of hate going around for it lately that I feel really guilty about it.
I have been tempted to buy Phillipa Gregory’s books solely because of their gorgeous covers. Now I feel like I should stay far away.

hehehe I totally get that- I never realised people could be so offended by what I did with my own books until recently 😉 hahaha yeah to be honest, a lot of her books have always left me mildly irked, though they’re well written- I’ve sworn off her now though, cos her book wideacre was just horrific- if you stay away from that one you might enjoy it though 😉

I must confess, barring an audiobook I listened to long ago, I haven’t read much historical fiction at all. I guess they are not my ‘thing’ . but I might give Gregory a try if I find myself really bored some day. 😀

Haha, this was such a fun post. I really had to laugh about a lot of these thing you write. The thing that really shocked me the most was you not taking care of your books: SHOCK😮😮😮 I am someone that tries to take care of his books as best he can. Still doesn’t mean that I don’t occasionally mess that up though lol 😂😂No worries though, still won’t unfollow your blog, it’s too good for that 😂😂

Thank you so much!! hahaha well I’m relieved you can forgive me. The thing is, for some of my books (if I get them new) I’m careful not to even crease the spine… but so many of them come to me in such a tattered condition (second hand) that I just don’t see the point in worrying about it 😉 heeheh that’s a relief 😂😂😂

also, can I just say that trick with the font color to add a spoiler is really cool! I’ve always lamented the fact that WP doesn’t have spoiler tags like goodreads, but I can work with this. Thank you. 😀

Oh damn, Philippa Gregory is definitely not the way to go for historical accuracy… hahahah did you read the Hilary Mantel novels?

But yeah, the incest thing was actually annoying, it felt like it alternated the whole damn time between them being siblings and not – now they are, now they aren’t, oops actually they are, oh no they’re actually NOT… so annoying!

hahaha I know right?! 😂 I haven’t actually, though I plan to one day, cos they’re supposed to be good. Have you read them?

Oh gosh yeah- and it’s not like that even happened in real life *at all* so I don’t know why she had to make it such a big plot point. Actually, what I will never get is why are so many of her plotlines focused on incest? I just don’t get it.

I’m reading the Wolf Hall trilogy, though the last book possibly only comes out on 2019… *sobs* But they’re really good! And actually her books are what got me into historical fiction… and she’s pretty accurate, too, so that would probably not be too bothersome for you!

Right??? It’s just upsetting. I actually don’t even remember much of The Mortal Instruments series anymore by now because I got so upset at all this unnecessary drama…

Oh gosh I didn’t actually know it was a trilogy and the last one wasn’t out- thanks for the heads up actually, cos I think I’ll wait a little longer then 😉 That’s brilliant though- thanks so much!! I do have some historian friends who’ve said similar things as well- so I definitely feel like I can rest easy there 🙂

I’m adding my voice to the chorus of others who want to know what you wrote about HP. Not being a Pothead, I mean, Potterhead myself and having no special love for the series, I would be very interested…

Oh boy- you know I started to answer this and then ended up with two pages of notes- a lot of which would get me hounded off the internet, cos I’m not a Pothead either 😉 I’ll try and keep it a bit shorter than that 😉 I think for me personally there’s issues with the writing and characterisation- especially of the villain (oh gosh people are probably already grabbing their torches and pitchforks) but for the most part, my issues come later in the series (books 5-7) where two things happened: the series tried to be more “grow up” a little (I didn’t like its execution of that) and consequently I fell out of love with it. There are a lot of things to love about the series (the world, the mystery etc) and I get why it’s popular, however, it has some flaws. I’ve probably said too much for some people, but I think if I wanted to go into this properly, I’d have to do a whole post someday (but have also been advised not to 😉 )

Well, if it helps any…
I loved the first 3 books when they came out. The fourth I was like “hmmm, that’s different” and then books 5-7 I hated successively more until I went on a full on rant for book 7. After that I had nothing to do with Potter or Rowling. To this day I still won’t have anything to do with her writings…

Yep I can completely relate. Although I still really loved number 4, it did take the series in a wholly different direction, but it was 5 I had the most problems with. And I can really relate to that- out of interest may I ask why you didn’t like 7? (I mean, I know why I was dissatisfied, but it’d be interesting to hear another perspective)

I never read any Agatha Christie either and don’t plan to. Absolutely not interested. Also not in historical fiction although my dad always tries to recommend me books, especially by Rebecca Gable, his favourite German author. But nah, I need something supernatural 😀

I also get you when it comes to crying over books. I feel like I cry at the wrong times and I am always more concerned about all the animals! Character gets killed, but IS HIS HORSE OKAY THOUGH?? 😀

I accidentally drop my books all the time,so I am probably not a good book owner either. When I leave a book on the couch, there’s a good possibility, that one of my rabbits jumps up and starts munching -.-

hehe I’m glad I’m not the only one with that- I think it’s one of those things where people say I *have to* and I make non-committal noises, cos I like supernatural books too. I do like the occasional historical book, but more for made up people than real ones, cos that way I don’t have to worry about the real life figure. But yeah, fantasy’s always better!

hahaha I get that!! I often get more emotional about something like that (although when you talk about animals, I’m thinking of things like Black Beauty, where the animals are more important than the people anyway 😉 )

I don’t think I will ever be drawn to reading an Agatha Christie book. I love watching adaptations of her books but will never actually read them.

My great rebellion in school was to not read books. I hated being told what I could/could not read, so I decided to just not read them…well, until it became absolutely necessary. I did manage to get away with not reading a book for one of my exams though, that’s mainly because we basically did a test run on an old paper which had a similar question to the one we had haha.

I sometimes read the final paragraph of a book first so I know the end. Especially if it’s a series and it has a cliffhanger, I want to know what I’m signing up for. Similarly, I’ve gone and searched for spoilers so I can avoid my most dreaded trope, the love triangle.

hehe I haven’t actually seen one of the adaptations even (which maybe explains my lack of interest in the books) though I do actually plan to watch the Orient Express one- it looks so good!

haha that’s hilarious!! I love that you did an exam on a book you hadn’t read too!! I feel like it must happen more than people care to admit lol 😉

haha that’s so funny!! I haven’t ever flipped to the end, but I do get it, cos sometimes I just can’t stand the suspense!! Although for a lot of series I’ll read spoilery reviews sometimes (especially for books I’m on the fence about) and then stop when it gets too good- cos then I’ll actually want to read it. I’ve deliberately spoiled myself for Go Set A Watchman (and now have no intention of reading it, cos I realised it would ruin to kill a mockingbird- one of my all time favourites!) haha that’s a good shout! I detest the love triangle too!!

I’m one of those people you NEVER lend real books to because i carry them everywhere and NO MATTER what I do they look worn to me and YIKES I can’t bear to give it back to them with the edges bent (you know like they do when you carry a book in a bag…?)

And yeah Harry Potter is NOT a perfect book series… Honestly #3 was my favorite! hahhhahaha. (You can confess to me, I promise! 😉

My book club read Me Before You and I’m not sure that ALL readers understood that she was raped… by a group no less… I am intrigued though that most readers LOVE that book and yet aren’t bothered by what it says about emotional vs. physical trials of life! (I’m a mental health advocate so yeah this book offends me, though I’m fine with people loving it too… GAH! I’m too equal opportunity, aren’t I?!)

hahaha I totally get that- that’s why I’m too scared to borrow new books- I mean if it’s old it doesn’t matter- and I try to be better with other people’s books- but yeah my books get squished in my bag, so….

hehe yeah the funny thing is I still think it’s good, but it’s one of those things you’re not allowed to criticise. hehe so glad you liked that one!

Really? That was the bit that just broke me up. I literally couldn’t handle how much it ruined her life and ahh I just got so emotional about it. But yeah I get why that book offends people. To be honest, I was able to switch off for a change while reading, cos of the style allowed me to just focus on the emotions (I was reading a fair number of moralising books at the time and Me Before You wasn’t doing that, so I let it off the hook for a lot of things), but when I stopped to think about it I was like shiiiit. Also I buddy read it with my sister and she hated it, so I couldn’t not think about it for long 😉 . hehe it’s good to be equal opportunity! Especially when it comes to book lovin’ 😉

Honestly Orangutan, I totally get how horrifying what happened to her was… I actually think they just couldn’t face what really happened so they just rejected it. It’s amazing to me though how much what we read with stuff affects how we feel about a book!

One time my brother an I found an NYSYNC book, and we like, ripped out the pages, and rubbed dirt in it, and drew black marker all over the pictures, and set the corner on fire. We really hated NYSYNC, lol.

This is a pretty fun post! I’ve never read Agatha Christie as well and, you’ll probably be shocked at this one, I’ve never read pride and prejudice either. I’ve seen a million movie versions but I’ve never read the book itself.
Also, I read Harry Potter growing up but I’m not really interested in ever reading it again. I also hate incest in a book which is why I didn’t finish the mortal instruments. I also hate when main characters get killed off in a book and then brought back to life. So I will spoil and then quit a series if I find out that’s whats in my future if I keep reading, lol.

Aww thank you!! 😀 hehe no don’t worry, that’s not actually shocking. It took me ages to get into Austen- I didn’t click with it the first time I read it and I know loads of people who aren’t into it (including my mum 😉 ) Have you seen the Colin Firth version though? So good. Yeah I totally get that- I’m the same, though sometimes nostalgia creeps up on me 😉 Yeah I completely get that- hahaha wellll I was gonna say that Mortal Instruments doesn’t end up being about incest, so you could read it, but it totally does have someone that dies and comes back to life- so you’re better off out of it 😉 hehe I totally do that too 😉

I mean, they are YOUR books, so I think you can treat them however you want to 🙂 I used to treat my books pretty badly, and a lot of them were used anyway, but now I’ve caught the my-books-must-be-perfect obsession lol.

You stopped reading hist fic for years, which I’m assuming is a genre you like? I did that with vampire books, and I think it was actually because of Twilight, haha. I read all the books in high school, but I think I just was frustrated w/ how the vampires were portrayed, so I gave up reading about them for a while. Glad I started again eventually though!

Don’t worry, I haven’t read any of those notoriously sad books, but I don’t generally cry over books either. Crying over the wrong part of a book sounds like something I would do though 😛

Ahah I love these confessions so much. I like to keep my books pristine, but I love seeing book that … well, have lived, too. That doesn’t make much sense, does it?! I don’t know ahah 🙂
I’m really, reaally curious to hear your criticism about Harry Potter now 😛
Great post!! xx

Identify with number 9. I read to escape, not to go to places I am already uncomfortable in.

Never read Agatha Christie either. Seen so many tv and movie adaptations I would probably know the stories too well to bother, though I can never remember who dunnit even just a few weeks after reading a detective novel. This is a good thing as far as re-reading is concerned!

Hoarding multiple copies of my favourite books is the main one. 🙂 Not reading books until a year or two later after their release is another major one. I also confess to not being able to read John Green or Neil Gaiman. I have tried and can’t get on board with the writing styles of either. I’m sure some people would be horrified but I can’t get through them.

I honestly believe you could become super famous if you post about your love-hate relationship with HP (based on what you’ve told others in the comment section)! I haven’t read the books yet and am just waiting for my brain to slowly forget some key moments of the movies before I start the series hahah I also haven’t read any Agatha Christie book! Although… I plan on reading my first one before the latest movie adaptation of the Murder on the Orient Express hahahah Loved this post! Thank you for sharing your monstrous confessions!

hahaha or super notorious!! Maybe I will one day 😉 If I fancy people getting really mad at me 😉 haha that’s fair! I hope you like it when you get to it- as much as I can be critical of the series, I do feel like there’s a lot of great things about it and I’ve always understood its popularity. I’m glad I’m not alone in that- although it’s probably really bad that I might just watch the movie… I don’t know why, but the book just has zero appeal. I’ll see if I can try a sample, then decide 😉 Thank you so much!! 😀

Okay, now you got me all afraid of Philippa Gregory and I have THREE OF HER BOOKS just staring at me. WHAT DO I DOO??? 😦 i MEAN, I was already very intimidated by this genre and if this turns out to be a bad experience, it’s unlikely I’ll ever read any Historical Fiction for a CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT OF TIME.

*gasps* I too haven’t read ANYTHING BY AGATHA CHRISTIE AND SAAAAMEEE!! I don’t plan to either. Not in the foreseeable future at least. I don’t know bu SHE JUST DOESN’T INTEREST ME…AT ALL.

AND HEYYY!!! I HAVE FAIRY TALE anthologies tooo!!! Hans Christian Anderson and Grimm’s AND I LOOOVE THEM. AHHH!!! *_* FAIRY TALES ARE THE BEST. 😉

hehe well you might enjoy it- it’s worth giving it a shot if you’ve not tried it before. My main issue with a lot of her work is historical inaccuracy and her tendency to focus on some of the more (ridiculous) scandalous allegations BUT they can be enjoyable if you don’t care about that. Just… don’t read Wideacre- it’s full of tons of incest.

AHH I’m glad I’m not alone in that!! Yeah I just don’t think it’s my thing- although maybe I’ll try a sample at some point and see how I go.

Honestly, I can relate to so many of these. As an English major, I often find myself taking quizzes and even exams for books I had no time to read *ignores the fact that read and I review a book on my blog at least once a week*. And you should totally read And Then There Were None. It’s a super short read and the ending was one that no one could possibly ever expect. Also, no I’m afraid to read Phillipa Gregory. I know that a lot of tv shows and movies have been made from her works like The Other Boleyn Girl and The White Queen and I’ve always wanted to read one of them, but oh well. Let me know if you have any good historical fiction recommendation, I would love to read one!

Teehee I know right- I majored in it too, so I know what you mean- it’s just impossible to read all the books (especially when they had three a week on the syllabus, though only one for our tutorials- thankfully!!) Oh awesome- thank you for the tip!! hehe well I hate to put anyone off books, so I’ll say on the positive side she writes really well- but don’t count on her for historical accuracy- and probably avoid Wideacre if you don’t like incest (also she uses incest as a plot device wayyy too often) So yeah, I obviously don’t like her- but you might have more luck with her 😉 I tend to prefer historical fiction with made up characters, so for that I’d really recommend someone like Sebastian Faulks- if you haven’t read him- he wrote Birdsong and Charlotte Gray- they’re wonderful, evocative and really romantic too 🙂

I love the English major but the readings kill me! Especially since I also major in psychology! And I’ll definitely give Sebastian Faulks a chance. Birdsong has the highest rating so I might try that first. And I see that they are a series but I also see that people read one and not the others. Are they connected? Do they need to be read in order or together at all?

hehe ahh I can relate so much- I did a joint degree with Classics- so it was killer!! 😉 Joint degrees are the best for keeping things varied, but they’re tough! Ah brilliant! Yeah I read the second (Birdsong) and the third (Charlotte Gray) never actually read the first one- I will one day- but no, you don’t need to read them together. I think there’s one side character that turned up in both, as far as I remember.

YOU NEED TO PICK UP AGATHA CHRISTIE’S WORKS. DHSJSHSBS. WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING?*screams and runs in circles* Listen, start with ‘And Then There Were None’. Just read it. You’ll find yourself checking out some of her other books. DUDE, PLEASE START READING AGATHA CHRISTIE’S WORKS BECAUSE SHE IS GOING TO BLOW YOUR MIND TO BITS. It’s this or no bananas. 😂

heheheh I’d love to say I won’t cave on this, but already from the comments, I’m now considering trying a sample of her work at some point and seeing what I think. hahaha thank you for the tip!!! LOL!!! No don’t take my bananas from me!!! 😂😂😂

A majority of my books are secondhand! I ABSOLUTELY LOVE SECONDHAND STORES! There’s a comfy, homey, and just lived in look to secondhand books ❤ I usually highlight phrases in my books and have recently started using sticky notes as well! No guilt here :3

Oh, and Twilight? Yeah, it was my fault for spreading it around my year as well. There was a bit of drama to it! It got stolen at one point, and the girl who borrowed it was literally sobbing uncontrollably for that, then I had someone track down the thief, and they got the book back for me. Oh and I should mention I knew that the person I appointed as "seeker" was actually the thief *shrug*

hahaha *high five* (actually that's probably not something we should be high fiving over 😉 ) OMG that's a crazy story- incidentally, my book ended up disappearing for ages too- and when I finally tracked it down, it was all torn- the person that gave it back said that I must have lent it out like that- grrr. So funny that there was drama with your copy too- the Twilight books must be cursed 😉

Yes! 100% this post! For sure. I take better care of my hardback books than you do– but I also write in my paperbacks. Highlighting doesn’t happen, but only because I find it can bleed through the paper which distracts me. Writing in the margins? Dog-earing? Yes.

I don’t see anything wrong with owning multiple copies of a text in translation. Particularly fairy tales because they can be SO BEAUTIFUL! Are your collections also dog-eared and marked up?

I’ve only read 1 Agatha Christie novel so far and it’s Murder on the Orient Express. It was okay, but not spectacular as everyone makes it be, so maybe it’s not so bad that you don’t plan to read her stuff.